American Military Quotes

War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse.

The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave.

It [9/11 event] was aimed at symbols: the World Trade Center, the heart of American capitalism, and the Pentagon, the headquarters of the American military establishment. But it was not meant to be argued with. It wasn’t part of any negotiation. No message was intended with it. It spoke for itself, which is unusual.

No bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country.

I wish to have no connection with any ship that does not sail fast; for I intend to go in harm’s way.

The most persistent sound which reverberates through man’s history is the beating of war drums.

REAR, n. In American military matters, that exposed part of the army that is nearest to Congress.

The Chinese, on the other hand, were in the position of having an American military spy plane on a Chinese military base and they had their own internal problems to deal with. At first, the Chinese weren’t all that belligerent. They were just stalling to get their own bureaucracy in line.

Well, it’s a problem in general with the American military. If you are the biggest and the strongest military power in the world, you have this natural reluctance to learn the quirky ways of the natives in faraway lands.

It is vital that Iraq and the United States together send the clearest possible signal that those who commit acts of violence against American military forces and American civilians will not be rewarded with amnesty

Once we have a war there is only one thing to do. It must be won. For defeat brings worse things than any that can ever happen in war.

Would that it were so! … That the American military were targeting journalists.

War is cruelty. There is no use trying to reform it. The crueler it is, the sooner it will be over.

People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.

Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war!

General Otis is proclaimed American Military Governor of the Philippines and I protest a thousand times and with all the force in my soul against such pretension.

It is not the critic who counts…The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena.

The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive the Veterans of earlier wars were treated and appreciated by their nation.

Many in the American military have learned the fundamental dilemma of modern warfare: More money and better weapons don’t mean that you win.

Clearly the American military has been a force for good for the United States. There’s a reason we have a standing military. But there’s something to be said for having a much smaller military because then we wouldn’t be tempted to get involved in things we shouldn’t be getting involved in.

So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.

Never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.

When I first went to jail in 1960 with seven classmates trying to use their public library against the backdrop of my father being a veteran of World War II, not being able to use – having to sit behind Nazi on American military bases, I lost my fear of jails and death.

In the beginning of a change the patriot is a scarce man, and brave, and hated and scorned. When his cause succeeds, the timid join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot.

It is God’s job to forgive Osama Bin Laden. It is our job to arrange a face to face meeting.

How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!

It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech.

Courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened.

My fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.

We have met the enemy and they are ours.

Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.

It is hard as an American to support the failure of American military operations in Iraq. Such failure will bring with it the death and wounding of many American service members, and many more Iraqis.

Never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.

Don’t forget, incoming fire has the right of way.

National Review once opined, many years ago, that, every year, the Nobel peace prize should go to the U.S. secretary of defense: The American military is the number-one guarantor of peace in the world. But maybe something like a Nobel freedom prize would be a more appropriate award for Reagan than a peace prize.

This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave.

Among the men who fought on Iwo Jima, uncommon valor was a common virtue.

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.

The truth of the matter is that you always know the right thing to do. The hard part is doing it.

Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never — in nothing, great or small, large or petty — never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense.

Courage is fear holding on a minute longer.

Don’t fire until you see the whites of their eyes! Then fire low!

The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.